First Sunday of Advent 2017

"Season of Hope"

Matthew 1:18-25

Advent is a season of waiting, expecting, and hoping. "Advent" is a Latin word and means "coming." For hundreds of years, Christians have used an Advent wreath to remember and celebrate the first coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Advent should also inspire hope as we wait for the Second Coming of Christ.

The elements of the Advent Wreath have a specific meaning. We notice the circular shape of the wreath symbolizing God’s everlasting love for His church. The evergreens symbolize eternal life through Christ. The flame of the candles remind us that Jesus is the Light of the World taking away the darkness of sin. Over the centuries the colors of the candles have shifted based on different traditions. We use purple candles to remind us of God’s royal majesty over all His creation. The one pink candle signifies a joyous shift in our hearts as we prepare for the coming of the Lord. The one white candle in the middle is a picture of how our sins have been forgiven through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. As we light a candle each week, the flames will grow like our expectation of Jesus’ coming. Throughout church history, various candles have been assigned different titles to remind worshipers of specific parts of the Christmas story.

We are calling the First Candle “The Candle of Hope” because it symbolizes the promises delivered by the prophets as direct messages from God. The candle is also a symbol of the hope we have in Christ. Since the days of Adam, Jesus Christ was the Hope of those who are spiritually dead in sin.

We light this Candle of Hope today in anticipation of Christ’s coming return and in remembrance of how his birth was promised and foretold since creation’s beginning.

Matthew 1:18-25
Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:

“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall call his name Immanuel”

(which means, God with us). When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.